Category: Science – Quantum

“There is no objective reality! In order for the brain not to be overwhelmed by the constant deluge of sensory input, some sort of filtering system must enable us to pay attention to what our bodymind deems the most important pieces of information and to ignore the others. . . Our emotions . . decide what is worth paying attention to.”

Candace Pert spent much of her scientific career making a case that “Emotions are constantly regulating what we experience as ‘reality’.”

In her book Molecules of Emotion she chronicles her findings. Enjoying the cutting edge of research she took an unconventional approach to her Ph.D. dissertation and is credited with finding the opiate receptor in the brain. Her earliest work laid the foundation for the discovery of endorphins.

Dr. Pert pushed the boundaries of the scientific community, as well as resolutely calling out the patriarchy in the field. Both made her unpopular, occasionally blacklisting her. Still she relentlessly pursued her science.

Pert explained how our emotions are the sensory information travelling to our brains – filtering the “signals the receptors are receiving from the peptides.” Through her persistence, the scientific community even acknowledged “the presence of brain peptides in the immune system.”

Our emotions influence brain activity and our immune system. Knowing this we can reframe our expectations and beliefs. Using biofeedback and breathing techniques peptides can be released to manage things like stress and pain. When these peptides travel from the brainstem, they diffuse “throughout the cerebrospinal fluid” in an attempt “to restore homeostasis.”

“Mind doesn’t dominate body, it becomes body—body and mind are one.”

The more I learn the more convinced I am that allowing my emotions to be hijacked doesn’t just make for a crappy day; I’m doing myself a real physical disservice!

So strange that lure to allow the feeling of melancholy to settle in. It’s like a drug. Nostalgia, remembrance, longing; that exquisite yearning to fill the mysterious void – why is it so seductive to lean into? Is that what makes people want to sing The Blues?

That mood, that wallowing, self-indulgent feeling can be replaced with joy – replaced with gratitude. I could maybe rationalize the remembrance longing when I’m missing mom; but feeling the LOVE, unconditional acceptance, giddy silly happiness would be a better emotional memory to have when thinking of her.

This is a choice – to shift from something unproductive to uplifting. It’s a decision; but one that is made from conscious awareness the moment the indolent sentiment creeps in. The ego isn’t going to readily relinquish control to the spirit. The choice must come from a place of intention and strength.

Dr. Joe Dispenza (Breaking the Habit of Being Yourself) says to “catch yourself before going unconscious” – call out that unwelcome feeling to be erased. Say out loud: “Change! This is not loving to me!”

No matter how alluring, it is time to leave behind what will only bring a sad and lonely future. Awareness, choice and decision.

“The present moment is filled with joy and happiness. If you are attentive, you will see it.” ― Thích Nhất Hạnh, Peace Is Every Step: The Path of Mindfulness in Everyday Life

The Universe is knocking on my door with a message – MEDITATE. Meditation appeals to me; has for a long time. Back in my teens my mom and I took a meditation class at church. Since then I tried on many variations; transcendental, new age, simple mindfulness. The free 21 day meditation series offered by Deepak Chopra and Oprah Winfrey are wonderful. I know the benefits. So why does something so marvelous get thrown out the window when life gets busy? That’s when it would benefit me the most. OK! Today I will listen to the Universe.

In his book Breaking the Habit of Being Yourself, Dr. Joe Dispenza outlines why meditation is beneficial physiologically. There are reams of evidence on how it helps the brain – takes the chaos out those brain waves. Meditation gets me off the whack-a-doodle treadmill (aka manic beta waves) to a peaceful chill of acceptance (coherent alpha, theta energy). It helps align thoughts and feelings – my husband said I seem to be much happier these days (woot-woot)!

One of Dispenza’s definitions of meditation is “Becoming Familiar with Self.”

“…if you want to become happy, the first step is to stop being unhappy—that is, stop thinking the thoughts that make you unhappy; and stop feeling the emotions of pain, sorrow, and bitterness.”

The same goes for the desire to be wealthy – “decide to stop doing the things that make you poor.” Want to be healthy? “..stop living an unhealthy lifestyle.” — You’d think it was a no brainer – the want to; not so much. And the HOW? Oh boy. Step one: “You have to make the decision to stop being the old you, to such a degree that you make room for a new personality—thinking, acting and doing.”

I know this … I read Eckhart Tolle’s The Power of Now four times straight for 7 months (no obsessive compulsive here!); read Practicing the Power of Now “daily reader” and when A New Earth came out – read it too; yep twice. “Watch the thinker.” I know this – I know I’m not the crazy woman who can’t/ won’t let a thought go, that has the same imaginary conversation for three days! No! I’m the consciousness watching all that foolishness. When I pull myself up to the consciousness level I find that my whirly-gig brain calms down, quiets – goes peaceful. I must decide – and watch.

“To ‘know thyself’ is to meditate.”

Dispenza encourages us to take this idea a step further and “become familiar with a new self.” We just need to ask: “What is a greater expression of myself that I would like to be?”

“If you can maintain that modified state of mind and body, independent of the external environment and the body’s emotional needs and greater than time, something should show up differently in your world. That’s quantum law.”

Maintaining a “modified state of mind and body” –- much easier to do when the mind is allowed to quiet even for 15 minutes a day. Meditation takes practice – and I’m nowhere near ready to go whole hog. Baby steps. I can do 15 minutes, 20 minutes. It’s a place to start.

Honestly, everything starts with a decision. Gotta want to first – no change possible without it!

Dr. Joe Dispenza (Breaking the Habit of Being Yourself) says our personalities are set by the time we hit our 30s and 40s. We’ve adapted to our environment, honed our coping skills; know how to avoid our hot buttons, often without a conscious thought. Welcome to your life – over and over and over again. If I want a different reality, a different future – I must become a different person. It’s hard to see this repetitive re-living. It’s hard because it’s unconscious. By midlife though, something doesn’t feel right – we’re uncomfortable, unsettled – no longer willing to keep up the pretense that we’re happy.

Who the hell wants to look at the why? Looking hurts, it can be embarrassing, shameful, devastating. Those coping mechanisms were erected for good reasons. So we bury the pain, those feelings; find ways to distract ourselves with TV, technology, gossip; anything to “feel better or different” – and escape!

“This is the midlife crisis that most people know about. Some try really hard to make buried feelings stay buried by diving further into their external world. They buy the new sports car (thing); others lease the boat (another thing). Some go on a long vacation (place). Yet others join the new social club to meet new contacts or make new friends (people). Some get plastic surgery (body). Many completely redecorate or remodel their homes (acquire things and experience a new environment).

If I want a life worth living – a life of purpose, of meaning; full of love, joy, peace – how the hell can I avoid looking at the why? According to Dispenza the people who don’t bury their feelings:

“..ask some big questions: Who am I? What is my purpose in life? Where am I going? Who am I doing all of this for? What is God? Where do I go when I die? Is there more to life than “success”? What is happiness? What does all this mean? What is love? Do I love myself? Do I love anyone else? And the soul begins to wake up . . . . “

“Instead of buying a bigger TV or the latest smart phone, these people stop running from the feelings that they’ve been trying to make go away for so long, face it head-on, and intently look at it. When this happens, the individual begins to wake up. After some self-reflection, she discovers who she really is, what she has been hiding, and what no longer is working for her. So she lets go of the façade, the games, and the illusions. She is honest about who she really is, at all costs, and she is not afraid to lose it all. This person stops expending the energy she had been putting into keeping an illusory image intact.

Sometimes honesty comes with a price. Our people are invested in who we are – it feeds their own illusion of who they are. The may say “I liked you better the other way.” When they see us change we may make them uncomfortable. The emotional bond that keep us tight will scream for us to STOP … don’t change; stay the same illusion we were; even if it kills us.

Can I really say: “You know what? It doesn’t matter if I don’t make you happy any longer. I’m through obsessing about how I look or what other people think about me. I am finished living for everyone else. I want to be free from these chains.”

It’s a lot to ask. A lot to ask of me – to let go of my old life, my work, my friends to be true to myself. It is also a lot to ask of my tribe – to let go of the “me” that they know, but which I am not. The alternative is to continue to sleep .. is that really an option?

Could I get any more giggly with excitement!? I’m telling better stories – waking up to my personal kevtcher; short circuiting her control. I continue to poke around the intersection of philosophy and quantum theory – found a cool formula explaining why the prosperity gospel falls short.

In Breaking The Habit of Being Yourself; How to Lose Your Mind and Create a New One, Dr. Joe Dispenza uses quantum science to explain how our habits, our routines, our thoughts and feelings keep us stuck. “We communicate with the quantum field primarily through our thoughts and feelings.” He cites experiments on a theory of coherence conducted at the HeartMath Lab in California that produced the intended effect “when subjects held both heightened emotions and clear objectives in alignment.” If an experiment focused just on thoughts – no change was observed; on emotions alone – again, no observable change.

“An intentional thought needs an energizer, a catalyst – and that energy is an elevated emotion.”

“The quantum field doesn’t respond simply to our wishes – our emotional requests. It doesn’t just respond to our aims – our thoughts. It only responds when those two are aligned or coherent.”

When our thoughts and emotions are coherent we create a “state of being.” “The quantum field responds not to what we want; it responds to who we are being.” Our habits and routines, our thoughts and feelings perpetuate our state of being. With the same behaviors, I create the same reality; over and over. Without alignment with my feelings I can think all the happy thoughts I want; but if I walk around a bitchy, sad, annoyed mess – I won’t change anything. I’ll get the same ‘ole, same ‘ole.

“If you could create a new electromagnetic field by changing your state of being, which matches that potential in the quantum field of information, is it possible that your body would be drawn to that event or that event would find you?” – Oh Hell Yeah!

Time to ask “What am I broadcasting…?” -– Start matching the better stories with better feelings. As Dispenza says, I need to “think, feel, and act in new ways; we have to “be” different in terms of our responses to experiences. We have to “become” someone else.”

ALLOW THE SURPRISE! “To change our reality, those outcomes that we attract to ourselves have to surprise, even astonish, us in the way in which they come about.”

WHY? “If you can predict an event, it is nothing new . . the same you produced the familiar outcome.” According to Dispenza we’d just be going “Newtonian” – “all cause and effect” on the outcome. That’s “when the external environment is controlling your internal environment.” Instead, become a “quantum creator” – change the internal environment; “see how the external environment is altered by your efforts.” To do this I must “surrender, trust, and let go of how a desired event will unfold.”

Whoa! Tall order; can this control freak do it? Oh Yeah! I’m totally jazzed and working the heck out of it. I feel the good flying right at me!

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“As a single footstep will not make a path on the earth, so a single thought will not make a pathway in the mind. To make a deep physical path, we walk again and again. To make a deep mental path, we must think over and over the kind of thoughts we wish to dominate our lives.” – Henry David Thoreau